When Does ‘The Bachelorette’ & ‘Bachelor In Paradise’ Start for 2017?

Dancing With the Stars has five contestants left, which means that the new season of The Bachelorette is just around the corner with a whole new round of men looking for love. The way that ABC operates throughout the year, starting in January, is The Bachelor runs, followed by Dancing With the Stars, then The Bachelorette, then Bachelor in Paradise and lastly, another season of Dancing With the Stars.

On May 22, 2017, Rachel Lindsay will take on the role of the new star of The Bachelorette and the season 13 premiere will air from 9 – 11 p.m. ET/PT that night. Then, on Monday, July 31, 2017, The Bachelorette: The Men Tell All Special will air from 8 – 10 p.m. ET/PT.

On Tuesday, August 8, 2017, the season 4 premiere of Bachelor in Paradise will air from 8 – 10 p.m. ET/PT. Then, the time period premiere for Mondays will begin August 14, 2017 from 8 – 10:01 p.m. ET/PT.

So, who are the contestants that are going to be a part of BIP4? According to Life & Style, Raven Gates has already confirmed that she is joining the show. And, one former cast member who may show up to meet Raven is James Taylor. He posted the below tweet online about it, saying, “Lord have mercy, raven meet me in Paradise?! You deserve a good southern gentleman. #TheBachelorFinale.”

Lord have mercy, raven meet me in Paradise?! You deserve a good southern gentleman. #TheBachelorFinale

There are also reports that fan-favorite villain Corinne Olympios may show up as well. Another “villain” who may surprisingly return is Chad Johnson, who was pretty much kicked off the show. He has offended so many people in the cast, so a comeback would definitely be interesting. And, BIP isn’t the only dating show he will be on this summer if he does come aboard. Johnson is also set to appear on the show Famously Single, which also stars celebrities including Dorothy Wang, Ronnie Magro-Ortiz, Karina Smirnoff, Malika Haqq, David Mcintosh, Caleb Best, and Tiffany Pollard.

According to Refinery 29, former BIP cast member Amanda Stanton revealed her friend Sarah Vendall may be joining the cast and Alexis Waters previously told E! that she would love to be on the show.

In March 2017, Chris Soules revealed to Us Weekly that he had been asked to join the cast, but, with his fatal hit and run case, we’re thinking that Soules’ being on the show is a no-go. Even so, Soules previously said that:

They called last year and this year. I don’t think my schedule will allow it honestly. I don’t know. Honestly, it looks like a lot of fun. … When I went to be the Bachelor, I went to find a wife and I take this really seriously. I don’t wanna go into something like that where I’m disingenuous, you know? … I don’t wanna make a fool of myself on national television.